


Celebrations

by seanbw



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Aang (Avatar)-centric, Anniversary, Celebrations, Genocide
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-15
Updated: 2021-03-15
Packaged: 2021-03-24 03:21:53
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,852
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/30065910
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seanbw/pseuds/seanbw
Summary: It's one year post war, and Aang supposes he has nothing to celebrate.
Relationships: Aang & Hakoda (Avatar), Aang & Sokka (Avatar), Aang/Katara (Avatar)
Comments: 1
Kudos: 10
Collections: Kataang Discord Collection





	Celebrations

The people of the world had been looking forward to the first anniversary of Aang's victory. For weeks or even months he would hear people talking about it, and about how the towns were planning parades and how the cities were organising massive galas and celebrations.

It was supposed to show how peace had developed so quickly between the nation's over the past year. Oh, how ironic that was.

The return of the Fire Nation citizens from Yu Dao had gone so poorly at the beginning, Aang had little reason to believe it was worth celebrating. Spirits, it had almost caused another war. Although Zuko and Kuei were getting along now over the last week, the bitter and false taste of failure could still be felt by Aang.

The celebration in Ba Sing Se was scheduled for the anniversary of Sozin's Comet. The day Ozai had been defeated. It made sense to everyone else, to celebrate on that day, but Aang felt like he had nothing to celebrate.

When his friend's excitedly planned a private event at the Jasmine Dragon, as they did almost a year ago, he tried to pitch in his own enthusiasm, but it just wouldn't come to him. He was tired. The past year has been constant work for him, Sokka and Katara. He was at least glad for the small gathering. A large gala might've been too much for him in his current mental state. He was grateful for the lack of fangirls, as Sokka had called them. He didn't mind their enthusiasm, but some of them seemed hellbent on making Katara as jealous as possible.

He sat outside the teashop, alone in the twilight. It held a special place in his memory now and forever.

However, as was tradition, Sokka came out from the lobby of the Jasmine Dragon to interrupt Aang's tranquil moment. "Aren't you going to join us, Aang?"

Appa huffed.

"I don't think so, Sokka" he answered somberly. Celebrating was the last thing he wanted to do tonight.

"Come on!" the older boy pleaded. "We've got meat, and tea, and tofu! You love that stuff." Sokka was confused. He could not fathom why Aang of all people would be so down on a night like this. Shouldn't he be celebrating the most?

"Leave me alone, Sokka" he answered, a little more bitter than he had intended to sound. He turned around and faced his back towards his friend.

"Okay. Sorry. I'll head back inside" Sokka resigned, feeling guilty. He probably should've let Katara come out here.

Aang was annoyed now. Sokka always knew how to unintentionally kill the mood. The last few days Aang sat on a delicate balance of grief and happiness, and it was easy to tip him over the edge.

He was just getting settled into his spiral, when he felt the vibrations of another person walking out to talk to him. 'Give me a break.' The steps were lighter and quieter than the heavy, intruding ones of the Water Tribe boy he had dismissed earlier.

He turned to face her, attempting to hide his distress. He had a feeling it would be futile. Given his earlier outburst and refusal to participate, it was obvious something was wrong. On top of that, Katara knew him inside out. There was no getting around her. He just didn't want to talk about it. "Hey, Katara."

"Hey, Aang." She placed a hand on his bare shoulder. "You're not coming inside to join us?" He nodded. "So you're just going to sit out here by yourself then and ignore the rest of us?" she demanded, raising her voice.

"I don't mean it that way" his quiet voice attempted to explain.

"Well what does it mean, then?" she asked. She hadn't meant to get so angry with him, but having watched her boyfriend ignore them and her all night and sight in isolation in seeming contentment had made her reach her boiling point, and it was infuriating. The anger drizzled away into concern when she heard him sniffle. She paid closer attention, and found stray years finding their way down Aang's face. Her resolve faltered. "A- Aang?"

"Sorry" he replied quickly. "I didn't mean to guilt you. You can keep yelling if you like."

"You want me to?" she questioned.

He sighed. "I'm sorry, Katara. I don't know what's gotten into me today." Truthfully he did, but the less she knew, the less worried she would be, and they could get on with their lives tomorrow.

She sat down next to him and looked at his face. He was looking down, as if ashamed. "Why won't you come celebrate with us? she prodded gently.

"What's there to celebrate?" he relayed.

"A war ending? Your friends? You and me?" Katara listed. "I could pick a thousand things to celebrate about you alone."

Aang tried his hardest to ignore the praise. "You don't understand."

"Understand what?"

"Today is the anniversary" he continued.

"Yeah. The anniversary of the end-"

"The anniversary of the day my people died" he interrupted.

Oh. What do you even say when someone drops a bombshell like that on you? To someone who holds so much grief. She cursed herself, she should've known. 'Sozin's Comet.' She couldn't find the words to say, so instead she brought him to her chest and hugged him as tightly as possible. She wished she could give him the love of an entire nation, the love that was missing in his life.

"I shouldn't be taking that our in you guys. You were right" Aang apologised.

"We're your friends, Aang" she told him. "And I'm your girlfriend. You have to tell us what's going on, okay?" She didn't want to see him go down the tried rabbit hole.

"It just feels like I shouldn't be celebrating. A century ago today, I should've been there to defend my people. But I wasnt." Aang explained, voice muffled. "And it feels like I'm... cheating on them. By being here with you guys."

"If it was making you uncomfortable why didn't you say?"

"You guys were so excited to plan the one year anniversary. I just tried my best to go along with it."

She traced the tattoo of his bare arm. "Maybe next year we could work around you. Make a more... friendly celebration for you?"

"You guys don't have to do that for me!" he defended, feeling guilty.

"We love you, Aang, of course we have to. You're the centerpiece of all of this, the reason we're here. Let us love you" she told him sternly. "We're not trying to replace your old family, nor do we want to." Aang looked unsure. "You know what I've learned from being with you?"

"I don't have much to offer" Aang joked.

"After we met you I began to learn the was more to life than just surviving." Aang listened intently. "That I could move on and enjoy my life without being held back by past griefs, and without forgetting them. I admired you so much for that, and I had no idea how you did it."

"It's easy to distract" Aang admitted.

"I had so much love to give and nowhere to give it until you showed up."

"You really mean that?" Did she really love him that much. His heart swelled with just as much, he was sure. But hearing such a declaration made him want to take her right then and there.

She nodded and smiled brightly at his teary face. "I was thinking... maybe we can do something to honour your nation as well."

Aang thought about it for a moment. "Maybe..." he trailed off. He thought about what happened the week prior in Yu Dao. When the fan club had attempted to make peace in the battlefield. He admitted silently that he may have been too harsh on them, despite the appropriation. They were into his culture. He has the perfect opportunity. "Maybe I can become a teacher."

"Huh?"

"You remember the airbender fanclub we ran into in Yu Dao. They seemed so interested in my culture... I was such an ass to them."

"You weren't really, they were disrespecting your culture!"

"But I have the chance to teach them, show them about Air Nomad life and philosophy. I would be an idiot to pass up on that."

Katara hesitated. She had gotten irrationally jealous during their first encounter with the fangirls. Katara had made that up to Aang later, and he had shown her that Katara was his crutch and that no one could replace her. The girls from Yu Dao had seemed quite scholarly compared to the ones from Ba Sing Se. "That's a great idea, Aang! You won't have to feel so alone any more."

"Yeah. You're right, Katara. Thanks for this talk." They got up from their positions.

"Always. You know when you need to, you can always talk to me, or cry, whatever you need."

"Yeah," Aang smiled. "I may take you up in that" he laughed wetly, letting a few tears slide. He hugged her tightly. "I love you so much, Katara."

"I love you too, Aang" she told him truthfully. She was glad there was no need to hide it anymore, that she could be with him and help him with his grief in this way. It was intimate, and it was exactly what he needed. "Come on, let's head back inside."

Hakoda watched his daughter and her boyfriend from within the shop. She had clearly been bothered most of the evening, but what caught his eye was the lonely Avatar who had chosen to remain estranged from his friends.

The chief wasn't ignorant; he knew his history. Although with the celebrations, he almost forgot. One hundred and one years ago today, Aang's people had been massacred completely.

He felt bad, seeing Katara annoyed by his behaviour. It seemed she had forgotten. As he observed them together, and watched her face go from anger to concern, to relief, he felt better. That kind of grief was something he wished upon no one, yet the most hopeful and worthy boy in the world had been in the unfair end of it all. 'He truly deserves Katara' Hakoda mused. There was no fear about her safety either the boy, in fact, the chief probably feared more for Aang. But they made each other happy, and that's what mattered most. He supposed he should thank the Avatar for keeping his daughter happy. Perhaps he would someday, at their wedding.

He resolved, watching the two there, that he would make more of an effort to include Aang. He embraced the parental feelings over the boy. He deserved to feel loved and familial.

When the pair re-entered the building, he enveloped them both in a hug, and uttered Aang some comforting words.

At the end of the party, Aang pulled the chief aside and thanked him for treating him like family. He did his best not to cry. When he went to bed with Katara later that night, he squeezed her tight with all the love possible.

**Author's Note:**

> because i feel like people don't recognise enough that sozin's comet is not also the day the war ended, but the day the air nomads died. i feel like aang would not be able to concentrate on anything but that


End file.
